Key Takeaways
- The detection of the H5N1 chook flu pressure in dairy cows throughout six states has led to heightened public well being surveillance.
- Health authorities say industrial milk continues to be protected due to pasteurization, which successfully neutralizes dangerous pathogens.
- Proper meals security practices, together with cooking eggs and meat to advisable temperatures, can assist forestall potential transmission of chook flu.
Last week, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advised healthcare suppliers to be careful for signs of avian flu in sufferers.
The chook flu pressure H5N1, liable for tens of millions of chook deaths in recent years, has been detected in dairy cows in six states. However, well being authorities say there’s “no concern about the safety of the commercial milk supply” as a result of dairy merchandise are pasteurized.
A person in Texas recently contracted the H5N1 virus after publicity to sick dairy cows, marking the second human case within the United States. The first one was reported in 2022 in Colorado.
Although human infections are uncommon, extended or shut contact with contaminated animals may pose a threat of transmission. What about consuming eggs or dairy merchandise?
“We do not think about this a big public well being concern right now, however we’re watching it very intently. Things can change and so they can change shortly,” mentioned Keith Poulsen, DVM, PhD, a medical affiliate professor of medical sciences on the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine.
How Safe Is Milk in Light of Bird Flu?
Dairy cows are monitored utilizing a computerized system that tracks well being metrics and milk manufacturing. Sick cows are flagged and despatched to the hospital pen for therapy, in keeping with Poulsen.
He mentioned milk from sick dairy cows is both “discarded or pasteurized and fed to calves.”
Even if contaminated milk from an asymptomatic cow obtained into the system, pasteurization would destroy any dangerous pathogens, in keeping with Jennifer J. Quinlan, PhD, a meals security professional and government director of the Integrated Food Security Research Center at Prairie View A&M University in Texas.
Scientists are uncertain if unpasteurized or uncooked milk can move alongside the H5N1 virus, however uncooked milk can harbor numerous germs and is related to miscarriages, kidney failure, and demise. It is illegitimate in some states and usually not advisable by public well being specialists.
“There’s no details about avian flu in uncooked milk with the ability to make you sick. We simply do not have that information—it is too new,” Quinlan advised Verywell. She added that the most secure wager is to stay to pasteurized milk.
Risks from uncooked cheese stay unknown. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires a 60-day getting older course of for uncooked cheese to inactivate micro organism and viruses, however the company recommends cheese producers chorus from utilizing milk from contaminated or uncovered cows.
Are Eggs Safe to Eat?
Because chook flu is extremely contagious and lethal in chickens, it is unlikely that any contaminated eggs would enter the meals provide.
“We have management zones and we do diagnostic testing to allow motion of animals out of these management zones till the illness runs its course, after which we do our cleansing and sanitation of these services,” Poulsen mentioned.
Even on the off probability that contaminated eggs reached grocery store cabinets, correct meals security practices would destroy any chook flu pathogens. This means avoiding runny eggs and ensuring egg dishes attain an inner temperature of 160°F. It’s additionally greatest to retailer eggs within the fridge at 40°F or under for as much as three weeks.
“There’s no cause to assume there’s avian flu in eggs, but when there have been, cooking it’s going to do away with it,” Quinlan mentioned.
Is It Safe to Eat Chicken or Beef?
Poulsen mentioned it is nonetheless suitable for eating beef and rooster.
“We do not see it actually in any beef cows or beef calves. Whether or not they’re being affected, they are not displaying any sort of medical indicators. We’ve examined some, and we’ve not discovered something,” he mentioned.
For good measure, well being specialists suggest cooking rooster to an inner temperature of 165°F to kill any germs, together with potential avian flu viruses.Ground beef ought to be cooked to 160°F, whereas roasts and steaks ought to attain 145°F.
“There is not any actual cause to be involved right now,” Quinlan mentioned. “They’re actually attempting to maintain any contaminated meals out of the meals system.”
What This Means For You
Experts say you need not fear about getting chook flu from rooster or pasteurized dairy merchandise. Proper meals dealing with and meals security methods can cut back the chance of getting sick from micro organism or viruses in meals.
